CARAVAN

Let's go to Canterbury and check out the scene! Caravan is one of the primary examples of the Canterbury prog style. I am quite familiar with the title track, but not much else, so I'll say I'm a level one here.

Track 1 - Golf Girl

We begin with a trombone solo (I know right!?!) The band is playing a bouncy rhythm underneath as the vocals join in. Richard Sinclair's vocals are very British indeed. I like the whimsical instrumental but that follows. The trombone joins back in. As far as I can recall, this is the first song to feature trombone out of 65 albums I have listened to thus far. The beat is fun and remains bouncy as now we have a flute solo. The trombone is by John Beecham, and the flute is by Jimmy Hastings, who will apparently provide more woodwinds as we proceed. Fun track, I like it.

Track 2 - Winter Wine

We begin with clean strummed electric guitar and Richard Sinclair again on vocals. It begins with a ballady feel, but the rhythm section kicks in and the tempo increases. There is a nice dynamic shift at around the 3-minute mark. There is what I believe to be a keyboard solo at around the 4-minute mark, but it has a tone that could be a fuzz guitar to it. Cool panned wah-wah effect just before the 5-minute point. The rhythm section is very tight behind this extended solo. The vocals return around 5:55 and there are great harmonies at around 6:20. Great track.

Track 3 - Love to Love You (And Tonight Pigs Will Fly)

This one begins with a Hang on Sloopy type of riff and "more cowbell," but in a 7-4 time. Love the guitar tones at around 55 seconds in provided by Pye Hastings who is also the lead vocalist on this one. This is a very cool track, it sounds happy and poppy, but that 7-4 puts a twist on it. Excellent!

Track 4 - In the Land of Grey & Pink

As mentioned, I know this one quite well. Back to Richard Sinclair's vocals here. The beat is similar to Golf Girl. The lyrics are very trippy. We have a piano solo just before the 2-minute mark. The keyboard tone used in Winter wine is back here. (David Sinclair is the keyboardist but would leave for about a decade following this album.) There are some funny vocal parts that sound like they have puckered lips and are wiggling their fingers in a way that moves the lips while holding a note. Don't know how else to describe it, but I think we all played with that sound as kids. Fun song.

Track 5 - Nine Feet Underground (Medley)

And we have a sidelong closing epic of nearly 23 minutes to close out the album. There are several sections as listed below (cut & pasted from Wikipedia):

"Nine Feet Underground"

a. "Nigel Blows a Tune"

b. "Love's a Friend"

c. "Make It 76"

d. "Dance of the Seven Paper Hankies"

e. "Hold Grandad by the Nose"

f. "Honest I Did!"

g. "Disassociation"

h. "100% Proof"

Part b is sung by Pye Hastings, while part g is sung by Richard Sinclair. The rest are instrumental segments. According to my minor research, this track came about because David Sinclair had several instrumental ideas that he wanted to pull them together into a medley. The band liked the idea, and all contributed in bringing it together.

The track begins with "fuzz organ" with the rhythm section underneath. This is the tone I've been hearing on previous tracks. The organ is joined by guitar briefly, before the sax takes over, played by the previously mentioned Jimmy Hastings (Pye's Brother). David Sinclair has a truly unique sound as he uses wah-wah and fuzz effects on his organ. I believe we are transitioning to part b at around 5:55. Yep, vocals join in around 6:15. Richard Coughlan has some nice drum fills on this one. More organ soloing as we reach the 8-minute mark. I like the backing vocals at around 8:45, they add a nice touch. We transition to part c I believe at around 9 minutes in. David Sinclair is a good soloist, but I'd like to hear more from Pye Hastings. The next transition to part d seems to happen at around 10:45. This section is more mellow. Next change occurs at around 11:55 as the rhythm changes to presumably part e. Richard Sinclair is playing a wonderful bassline here. The next transition happens at 14:10 to what I believe is part f, if I'm keeping count correctly. A slower, but steady, tempo happens here. Things change again at 16:10 to part g and the vocals begin, so I must be on track. This part gives Moody Blues vibes. Things get rocking at around 19:30 for section h. This one reminds me of Rare Earth's version of "Get Ready." Richard Sinclair is quite a bassist, he seems a bit unsung as prog is known for having some of the greatest bassists of all time, and Richard Coughlin holds down the groove nicely. The track ends with a bit of a crash of cacophony.

OVERALL IMPRESSIONS:

This is a very enjoyable album. It's very fun and whimsical for much of it. The songs on side one are each quite good. The epic on side two is also good but feels more like an extended jam session for much of it. I believe that is due to how it was pieced together. As mentioned above, there doesn't seem to be much of an opportunity for Pye Hastings to be featured on guitar, as most, if not all, of the solos are played by David Sinclair on the organ. I like it quite a bit, but I don't think it reaches the heights of some of the other albums on the list. I'll give this a 4 out of 5 stars.

When it comes to albums that capture the imagination, "In The Land Of Grey And Pink" (1971), the third work by the British Canterbury prog band Caravan, truly takes the crown. Both the fairy-tale album cover and the music itself are creations to lose yourself in constantly. The illustration by Anne Marie Anderson on the cover shows a piece of the two-toned land. For over fifty years, this image has represented the lightness of the music. Think of it as a surrealistic blend of works by Pieck and Tolkien, emerging in a musical fusion of jazzy elements with a psychedelic layer of prog and pop infused with a lot of humor. The sound of the tracks undeniably contributes to the airy character of the music. Of course, everything starts with the compositions and their execution, but the transparent production that David Hitchcock gave the record elevates the music to something magical. For me, my old edition has so much charm that I want nothing to do with the later polished versions. Long live my faded cover.

At that time, Caravan still had the strong lineup of their previous two albums. Who wouldn't want to listen to Richard Sinclair's clear voice, and his driving bass playing is a must as well. Alongside Sinclair, guitarist Pye Hastings also provides vocals. Not on a grand scale, but certainly beautiful. His musical input as a guitarist mainly consists of tight and subtle chords. In my opinion, the standout of the album is keyboardist David Sinclair. He frequently engages with his fuzzy organ, which leaves a brilliant mark on the album. Drummer Richard Coughlan completes the regular lineup with rousing grooves and tasteful rolls. Besides these four creatives, guest musician Jimmy Hastings adds the finishing touches to the music in many places with his flute and saxophone. What you hear is truly remarkable.

That "In The Land Of Grey And Pink" contains only five tracks is indicative of the band's members' independence, who primarily want to define their own playing field. The album has four tracks on side A, while side B is entirely devoted to the epic Nine Feet Underground. Like the Genesis album "Foxtrot" (1972) and the Yes classic "Close To The Edge" (1972), "In The Land Of Grey And Pink" has helped set the standard within progressive rock. It's amusing that people today consider a five-minute track to be 'long'; for me, we only start talking when a track exceeds fifteen minutes.

The album starts convincingly with the infectious Golf Girl. Richard Sinclair's singing immediately gives that pleasant feeling that makes the record so special. Notable here is also the theme that slide trombonist John Beecham lets resound throughout the track. For me, this is a very familiar sound, as my father played the instrument as well. Golf Girl is an unadulterated Caravan pop song, and that's the impressive part: the band manages to keep every track within their own framework, whether it's a short song or a progressive epic, Caravan always remains themselves. There's a passage with wonderful organ play, and Jimmy Hastings' flute adds that typical layer of frivolity. The subsequent Winter Wine, also sung by Sinclair, aligns most with the fairy-tale nature of the cover. The captivating track develops from grey-pink to pink-grey. In other words: from calm folk to lush keyboard passages and then even more beauty, you are entranced by the music. Winter Wine was initially an instrumental track with wordless vocals, which somewhat explains the strong solo section. Next comes Love To Love You (and Tonight Pigs Will Fly) written and sung by Pye Hastings. This mid-tempo song may be slightly less lush than the other tracks on "In The Land Of Grey And Pink," but it fits seamlessly. Side A concludes with the lyrically amusing title track. This mid-tempo track perfectly aligns with the band's motto: life is too short to be sad. A few times, Richard Sinclair has to bend deep to pick up his low vocal notes. The track can handle this André van Duin-like fun well.

After these fine four tracks, you get the same kind of music on side B, but with more depth. The over 22-minute Nine Feet Underground is more intense, thrilling, and musically captivating. The album side-filling track has a certain restraint that bursts open in the spicy, riff-oriented final part 100% Proof. From the first part Nigel Blows A Tune, you are placed in a comfortable position from which you are never torn away. Let yourself drift on the unique keyboard work of David Sinclair, who is also the composer of this masterful piece. Jimmy Hastings' tenor sax solo also adds distinction to the piece, leading into the second part Love's A Friend. This is one of the two vocal parts of Nine Feet Underground. It's particularly refreshing to hear Pye Hastings as a singer here, and Richard Sinclair's vocal contribution later in the track also deserves praise. As mentioned, there's a lot of focus on instrumental sections. The middle part of the epic consists of four relatively short instrumental pieces that together provide swinging, restrained, humorous, and psychedelic atmospheres. If the epic comes across as a noble patchwork, I can assure you that musically there's no sign of that. Thanks to the good arrangement work and the clever production, it's enjoyable until the last chord fades away.

I always like to keep my final conclusion short and to the point: it's good to dwell in the land of grey and pink.

Orginally posted on www.progenrock.com

The amusing title "For Girls Who Grow Plump In The Night" is the name of the fifth studio album by British Canterbury prog band Caravan. The album was released on October 5, 1973 on Deram Records, the label that also housed Camel. Initially, the intention was to portray the lady on the cover naked. Deram did not agree with that and the pregnant model was given a nightgown. Although I find that retroactively extremely unfortunate, I have been hooked on the album for years due to the unapproachable charm of its music.

Everything on the album is dominated by the rigorous changes in the line-up of the band. Singer/bassist Richard Sinclair and keyboardist Steve Miller had left Caravan after the more jazzy "Waterloo Lily". First of all, the young Geoffrey Richardson was attracted with his viola and also keyboardist Derek Austin and bassist Stuart Evans joined in. However, the latter two did not stay with the band very long and in the end Caravan formed the line-up which is present on this album. In addition to veteran singer/guitarist Pye Hastings and drummer Richard Coughlan, there are keyboardist David Sinclair, the aforementioned Richardson and the excellent bassist John G. Perry. In fact, there are no less than three new members to be heard, although original member David Sinclair (the king of the fuzzy organ) is back on the nest, to the joy of many. So he is not really a new member. Furthermore, there is a very long list of collaborating artists. For example, at certain times a large horn section and a real orchestra are used.

It is logical that this entire line up change has had an impact on the musical aspect of the album. Not only as a musician, especially as a composer Pye Hastings had a large contribution. The main part of the songs is written by him, which means the music is more rocky but also more romantic. Fortunately, the typical Canterbury sound with its driving rhythms and voluptuous keyboard playing is never far away. Caravan always has something artistic in it but there also is the necessary humor and light-footedness in the music. Don't be fooled. Richardson's playing on the viola gives the music a nice folky nodge, but there is no explicit folk to be heard.

So what do we hear? Opener Memory Lain, Hugh / Headloss is immediately an attractive composition of more than nine minutes. Tasty riffs from the guitar are joined together with the windings of the viola and there is a delicious organ solo in unadulterated Caravan style. There also is excellent support from eight horns arranged by Jimmy Hastings. There is a nice moment when the drums and the flute together provide a few breaks. With the Headloss part the tempo goes up and at the end of it is a duel between guitar and violin. The subsequent Hoedown is a somewhat bouncy sneeze and Surprise, Surprise can be labelled as a sultry ballad in which the slide guitar certainly increases the atmosphere. Speaking of atmosphere: the text of C'thlu Thlu is downright creepy, although it has nothing to do with the title. C'thlu Thlu is a monster from the underworld, a lurid octopus, created by H.P. Lovecraft. Musically, the song sounds rather menacing and psychedelic.

The Dog, The Dog, He's At It Again is supposedly a pop song, I think it's a great pop song. Not only because the ambiguous text actually is bout a sexual act, but mainly because of that cool keyboard playing in the interlude. The singing of Pye Hastings and John G. Perry together also has a positive effect. Throughout the album, Perry shows that he is a perfect vocal opponent for Hastings. In the solid Be All Right he sings the lead vocals. He does an excellent job. His voice fits very well with the powerful atmosphere that the song exudes. It blends seamlessly into the intoxicating, congas-driven Chance Of A Lifetime. You would almost call this song the highlight of the album because it is so beautiful, but then the epic closing track L'Auberge Du Sanglier presents itself. Two highlights: A Hunting We Shall Go with its frenzied guitar solo and Backwards where the synthesizer and the beautiful orchestra almost make you forget that you are actually listening to a cover of Soft Machine. It fits like a glove.

"For Girls Who Grow Plump In The Night" has a fantastic blend of epics, ballads, pop songs, psychedelics, hard rock and classical music. Caravan knows how to bring all that to the fore on an album of more than 44 minutes. I got to know the band and the LP somewhere in the mid-70s. Their unique music still manages to hold me in its grip and I am convinced that it will never let me go.

Orginally posted on www.progenrock.com

Blind Dog is, in my opinion, the final essential Caravan album. Much better than the still-good Cunning Stunts that came before, it's mostly bright and fun poppy tunes, but it absolutely retains the progressive aspect for now at least. I've seen a lot of people say that this is their favourite album of Caravan, which I understand as I used to agree with them, but the problem I have with it is unlike their first 5 albums, it grows less enjoyable over time.

Here Am I and Chiefs and Indians both have excellent instrumental sections and solos, especially the latter which is essentially a minute and a half of soft lyrics about not fitting in and then a ~3 minute instrumental jam with catchy solo followed by catchy solo, with a return of the soft beginning at the end.

The next 4 tracks work as a suite, as there is continuous music throughout, and I wish they had been conceived as one song. Oik showcases the classic Caravan humour, Bobbing Wide is a great laid-back instrumental (the only one on the album), Come on Back is a cute love song (this album's equivalent of Love to Love You) and the Oik reprise isn't really a reprise because the melody is that of Come on Back, and the high-pitched ladies' voiced singing are a bit repulsive.

Jack and Jill is a funk, story-based song, similar lyrically to Hello Hello or Cthulhu Thlu. The "you're in the wrong key" at the beginning always makes me laugh. Great bass tone (I don't play bass, so idk if this is the correct term). The ending with the dog barking is the only truly interesting thing about this song though, but I don't not like it. On my first few listens to the album mid last year, this was my favourite song on it.

Can You Hear Me? is ANNOYING. It's incessant, repetitive, driving funk-pop that is copy and pasted for the first 4 minutes. Good viola solo in the second half however.

All The Way - A stunning, heart-wrenching closer. Sings about lost love and I get close to tears on listening occasionally. The instrumentation is much better than most of the rest of the album too; I can hear the synth used in a lot of Camel songs (eg the opening of Lunar Sea), and the flute and viola coming in at various points keep it together as it's almost 9 mins.

The major irk I have with BDASD is the bright mastering and consistently poppy melodies get quite tiresome after many listens - even though they are much more pleasing if you're listening for the first time, they seem to get worse for me over relistens (something that is the complete opposite for Caravan's first 5 albums). Nonetheless, I'll probably listen to it every 2 or 3 months from now on Best songs: All The Way, Chiefs and Indians, Here Am I

1. Golf Girl it's the year, rock emancipates itself between psychedelic rock and Canterbury rock yes I already wrote it, a soft, popular and linear sound; a sound that gives space throughout the tracks with fluid guitar orchestration and imposes the genre 2. Winter Wine shows the aforementioned archetypal sound; a soft air, not SOFT MACHINE although, a fluid flowing sound, at first glance this does not cause; and then and then there is the progressive drift which arrives and which sweeps away the doubt; delicate and sensual pop rock, far from hard riffs 3. Love to Love You (and Tonight Pigs Will Fly) for the even more pop title, a consensual tune, a folk tune with the flute solo. I never understood the enthusiasm that this album could arouse, perhaps one of the precursors of the sound, perhaps; good Pye is there to hold the solo which goes well and brings back a little to the rock sound with energy 4. In the Land of Gray and Pink with a beautiful intro which finally reassures me, yes progressive; the sound in the same vein, more nervous, of the choirs, of the keyboards which give a little relief, yes where the low hurts for me; so take advantage of it... but why wasn't there any before?

5. Nine Feet Underground for side B, yes we get up, we change the LP, the K7 and we settle down again; beautiful jazz rock intro with Jimmy on sax, a progressive drift in the vein of future CAMEL; the soulful, cool, swirling atmosphere, a pleasant struggle between the different instruments highlighting themselves one after the other; 8 drawers for this long title, a real medley where everything stacks up; dissecting it no, but talking about it in a more subjective way yes; it's with the languid flute, it's really Camelian, it's also on the marshmallow candy that I like to refer to on Robert WYATT, the kind of thing you sink into; the finale goes up a notch and launches prog drifts into all directions and thus shows that prog blood can hide in a musical tune without there being the prog stamp... Well at the time there was no didn't have the stamp yet!!! (3.5)

What an impressive work. Caravan exudes more magic on this album than many big name bands in their entire discography. It is as if a new level of composition, of sonic beauty, is known. In 1970, they already had everything clear. The merits of the Sinclair cousins here are very difficult to measure. The album achieves a kind of fragile, but always magical continuity that I can't imagine could disappoint anyone. Caravan is one of the most pioneering bands in all rock. Everything is marvelous here, but the suite "With an Ear..." is a perfect composition, outstanding all around. Definitely my favorite song on the album. This is a true marvel.

Review #97!

I bought this album on vinyl just because it was not accessible to me anywhere else: not on Youtube or Spotify, not on streaming platforms anywhere to what I could find. So, after listening to 'In the Land of Grey and Pink' until I loved it, I realized I had to get my hands on more Caravan material. And this is what I found. 'Memory Lain, Hugh/Headloss' felt unusually rocky and Pink Floyd-esque for Caravan. At this point, I was concerned I wouldn't like this album. But I still enjoyed this song quite a bit. Some woodwinds and brass gave me some of that Canterbury feel I expected and needed. A guitar solo rips through at some point, reminding me of 'Nine Feet Underground - Medley'. I felt I needed a bit more angelic Pye Hastings vocals, like in "In The Land". 'Hoedown' feels like a callback to 'Golf Girl' or 'Love to Love You(And Tonight Pigs Will Fly)'. 'Surprise, Surprise' finally fulfilled my desire for angelic Pye Hastings vocals. A nice Peter Geoffrey Richardson viola solo ends the song. 'C'thulu' sounded magical to me at first listen. One of my favorite Caravan songs ever. It sounds so impossibly fun to record. It reminded me a wee bit of Frank Zappa's 'Stinkfoot' and of brother band The Soft Machine's 'Facelift'. Kicking off side two is 'The Dog, The Dog, He's At It Again'. I don't really know how to describe it, but it's quite beautiful and great. It has some tasty little harmonies somewhere inside of it. After a while of harmonies, the music explodes into this future-jazzy keyboard solo in one of the best parts of this entire album. Then the music slows down and the harmonies pick up again to end the song. Another one of my favorite Caravan songs. 'Be All Right/Chance of a Lifetime' sounded eerily familiar to me at first listen. I still don't know why. The song picks up very quickly, jumping right into the rocky atmosphere and a short guitar solo. It is songs like this one and 'Surprise, Surprise' when I realize that the introduction of a viola player was quite critical to the sound of this album, even though it's a little odd. I say this because of the freaking bad-ass viola solo in this song. Prog on, Peter. Ending the album is 'L'auberge Du Sanglier/A Hunting We Shall Go/Backwards/A Hunting We Shall Go - Reprise'. (God save my fingers after typing that title!) This starts like a Yes song or something like that. This ends and a delicate piano solo plays. Other instruments follow until before you know it a beautiful symphony is unfolding before your very eyes. Absolutely heart-wrenching and tear-jerking. Maybe in the running for the best prog album-closer of all time. Maybe I'll run a poll. Who knows? The places this album can take you...

Review #92!

Caravan's wonderful masterpiece, 'In The Land of Grey and Pink'. A beautiful record, full of surprises. Relatively far from other Canterbury Scene masterpieces like The Soft Machine's 'Third', but great in its own way. I did not like this at all, but it required only multiple listens and undying hope for me to finally enjoy this masterwork. The album starts off with 'Golf Girl', a pretty little love song with the classic Canterbury twist. This is the song that allowed me to keep hope for this album. My second favorite Caravan song, just below "Nine Feet". Then is 'Winter Wine', a soft, soothing song about - guess what - Wine! This track has some brilliant lyrics. 'Love to Love You(And Tonight Pigs Will Fly)' is another fun little love song with some great lyrics and a beautiful flute solo somewhere within it. The last song on Side One is the title track, with even more wonderful lyrics (seems to be a recurring theme in this album) and folky undertones. Then is- Haha. Haha. Hahaha hahaha! The beautiful, the hypnotic, the mesmerizing, the perfect 'Nine Feet Underground - Medley'. Full of delicious jazz interludes, delicate vocals and lyrics, and intense jamming. My favorite song of all the progressive groups to arise from Canterbury from my favorite album of all the progressive groups to arise out of Canterbury. A wonderful record. Worth infinite listens.

For a good while now, Caravan have been putting out only one studio album every decade or so; if they stick with that model, their 2020s offering is It's None of Your Business. As has been the case since at least as far back as Better By Far, the band are very much not trying to produce any prog epics here - this is, once again, an album indulging their less complex side.

Not, however, their lighter side - there's an extra shot of energy here. It's not Caravan going heavy metal (or even hard rock) by any stretch of the imagination, but there's just a bit more oomph to proceedings, making this a striking contrast from the fairly laid-back approach they have taken in their recent history.

After The Battle of Hastings, Caravan would settle into a pattern of only producing one all-new all-original studio album per decade; Paradise FIlter is the one they put out in the 2010s. Mark Walker takes on the drums here, band co- founder Richard Coughlan having been too unwell to participate in the sessions. (He would die shortly before the album's release). As a result, Pye Hastings is the only original member left at this point, though the other band members aside from Walker are all Caravan veterans of a fairly reasonable vintage.

For a good long while - at least since the mid-to-late 1970s, I'd argue - Caravan have been more interested in cultivating their poppy soft rock side than their prog side; they still play their old prog standards in concert, but they show little inclination to produce new ones, instead producing mellow, grown-up pop-rock with Canterbury accents. For some listeners, that probably sounds terrible - but those listeners likely jumped off the Caravan bandwagon back around Better By Far. If, on the other hand, you don't mind Caravan's poppier moments, this will likely be a pleasing continuation of that direction.

For the most part, the album is fairly mellow, though there are some pieces like Dead Man Walking which incorporate enough drama and foreboding to be exciting even if they aren't that complex, so as far as Caravan's pop album goes, it's one of the more adventurous in terms of mood and tone.